FERMENTATION 227 



(.. i 



HAEMOLYTIC AND BACTERIOLYTIC FERMENTS 



Bordet's Experiments. 1 Inject into the perito- 

 neum of a guinea-pig 10 c.c. defibrinated rabbit 

 blood on five successive days. After two more 

 days bleed the guinea-pig and obtain the serum, 

 by allowing the blood to stand in test-tubes in a 

 cool place until the shrinking clot has pressed 

 out the serum. 



1. Mix a drop of serum from a fresh guinea- 

 pig (one not injected with rabbit blood) with a 

 drop of defibrinated rabbit blood and examine 

 under the microscope. The corpuscles show a 

 very slight agglutination, but are otherwise un- 

 injured. The normal serum of the guinea-pig is 

 almost inactive upon rabbit blood. 



2. A. Mix a drop of the serum from the 

 injected guinea-pig with a drop of defibrinated 

 rabbit blood and examine under the microscope. 

 The corpuscles are strongly agglutinated. 2 



B. Mix 0.5 c.c. of the serum with 1.5 c.c. 

 defibrinated rabbit blood. 



1 Bordet : Annales de 1'Institut Pasteur, 1898, xii, pp. 692- 

 694. 



2 Agglutinated blood looks granular, especially on gentle 

 shaking ; the massed corpuscles sink rapidly ; they will not pass 

 through filter paper. Agglutination of blood corpuscles is 

 similar to the clumping of the typhoid bacillus in the serum of 

 a typhoid-fever patient. 



